Dorian was not expecting the winter ball to turn out anything like this.
The winter ball was a moment of celebration for all of Auradon Prep. It was especially exciting for Ben, one of Dorian's friend, because there would be some kind of special ceremony going on. As the recently declared king, although a minor, he did not have real governmental power. His father, Beast, still took the lead, from Dorian's understanding.
It was dark, and Dorian was mildly concerned with how he was looking; the weather was stormy, the moon, although bright enough to illuminate the outside, was still obscured by cloud cover. This was problematic for him, as he could not examine his appearance, although he certainly knew what he should look like: a tall boy with alabaster white skin, medium length black hair, and blue eyes, in a black suit with a dark blue shirt and black tie, and a string of several pearls around his neck on a piece of fishing line. To most people at first glance, he knew it would seem like very feminine jewelry, but as the son of Ariel, he had to represent.
He entered into the ballroom with Ben and Mal, along with some of Mal's friends: Carlos, Evie, and Jay. Everyone was dressed in their finery; Evie, to Dorian, seemed particularly excited for the ball with her boyfriend Doug on her arm. Mal, on the other hand, seemed extremely uncomfortable in the regal looking purple dress that Evie undoubtedly made for her.
The ballroom itself was magnificent. It had a large skylight from which the moon was clearly visible: the result of magic, Dorian knew. There were large glass chandeliers and candles all over, along with strobelights and a disco ball hanging from each chandelier. Yellow and gold drapery hang from the walls.
"Balls definitely don't seem like they did when my parents did them," Ben said.
"Nah," Dorian agreed. "Although, this does kinda look like when your parents danced together, doesn't it?"
Ben crossed his arms as the group found a table to sit at. "I suppose."
Once at the table, Dorian sat down in between Ben and Doug. Doug sat next to Evie, who sat next to Carlos, who sat next to Jay. Ben was next to Mal, who sat next to Jay.
"So, isn't this ball supposed to have some kind of like, ceremony?"
"Yeah," Ben said. "To celebrate my first full year as king."
"Yep!" Mal said. "I'm so excited for you!" There was a visibly pained expression on her face, although Dorian could tell she was trying to be supportive.
"Alright," Dorian said. "Well, I need to go get some fresh air or something. The bathroom is right down the hallway, isn't it?"
"Yeah," Ben said. "You need someone to go with you?" He asked, rising.
"No," Dorian said. "I'm fine, thanks."
Dorian stood up, excusing himself from the table and exiting the ballroom to go to the bathroom. He stepped outside and walked down the hallway, finding the bathroom relatively quickly. He knocked once to make sure it was empty, and then stepped inside, closing and locking the door behind him.
"Wow," he said. "This bathroom is pretty nice for Auradon Prep." The black and white tiled floor was spotless, with a porcelain white toilet, a urinal, a window, and a sink with a mirror-cabinet. He opened the cabinet and found makeup wipes, toothpaste, mouthwash, and condoms.
"Condoms?" He muttered to himself. "Jeez." Dorian opened the window of the bathroom, taking a deep breath of the fresh air. It was raining, and dark, although the Isle of the Lost was still visible in the distance, the rocky coast of the island glaring ominously at him.
The fresh air felt excellent for him, refreshing him and clearing his head in preparation for the ball. He washed his hands when he was finished with the bathroom, and walked back to the ballroom, only to hear voices yelling and chaos from down the hall.
"I can't stand this!" A girl's voice cried.
"Mal! Please!"
Ben.
"Crap," Dorian thought. He sprinted down the hall and back into the ballroom, where at the very end of a long red carpet, stood Ben, Evie, Carlos, Jay, and Mal with Ben's parents, the Beast and Belle.
Mal's eyes were glowing yellow in hysterics.
Great, Dorian thought. A new color? Exciting.
He ran up to the group, where Mal was backing away frantically.
"I can't do this anymore! You're just expecting me to become this- this princess that I'm not! I'm not from here! I can't do this!"
Ben's eyes widened. "Mal- don't do this."
Carlos raised his hands. "C'mon Mal! Lighten up!"
"No!" She cried. "Don't you miss being evil? Being able to look at someone and send them running in another direction?"
Jay crossed his arms. "Never, honestly."
Mal's eyes widened in shock. They flashed a bright light, blinding everyone in the room. Green smoke appeared around Mal until it covered her body. Mal herself seemed to disappear into it, as the smoke swelled until it nearly filled the entire ballroom. Almost immediately as it begun, the smoke vanished, in its place a thirty foot tall black and green dragon.
"Mal!" Ben shouted.
The dragon roared three times, before flying in a circle and out of the skylight. The ground trembled, and Dorian fell, hitting his head on the ground and making him see double. His vision blurred, colors mixing together as if he were drunk. The last image in his mind was the black dragon flying in the direction of the Isle of the Lost, before he passed out.
"Dorian! Dorian, wake up!" A familiar voice rang in his head. He opened his eyes.
"Evie?" He leaned forwards to see a girl with blue hair trying to shake him awake gently, her own eyes red and puffy.
"Get up, please! We have a huge problem on our hands," she said.
"What?"
Then, it all came back to him; Mal spazzing out, turning into a dragon, her eyes glowing yellow instead of green like when she normally uses magic, and then he recalled her flying away to the Isle of the Lost.
"Mal transformed, and cursed everyone! Everyone's under a sleeping curse!"
"What do you mean, everyone?" Dorian said.
Evie took a deep breath. "Well, you and I, and then Ben, Carlos, and Jay. We weren't hit by it. She knocked us all down when she transformed and flew off. But- but Doug!"
She slapped her cheeks, most likely attempting to pull herself together. "The boys went to make sure that nobody was hurt, and to see if anyone is still awake. They should be back by now. I stayed here to see if I could get you to wake up."
She reached for her mirror. "Magic mirror, shine a bright light." The mirror flashed a brilliant white light as if it were a beacon. She waved it outside.
"That way, they'll know to come back," Evie said.
Moments later, Jay, Carlos, and Ben entered the ballroom. The five of them gathered right below the skylight where Mal transformed and flew away.
"We can't break the sleeping curse," Ben said.
"So what should we do? We can't just leave Mal alone on the Isle of the Lost, and this curse needs to be broken." Evie said.
"We have to head back," Carlos said.
"We're heading to the Isle of the Lost?" Dorian said. "To bring back Mal?"
"It's the best plan we've got," Ben said. "Besides, she can't just run away like that. She knows that she's good. She doesn't belong there."
"How do we get there?" Jay said.
"Well," Dorian said. "I think I have a solution to that." He fingered his necklace.
"These pearls were my mom's, but she gave them to me. They're artifacts from Ursula. If you swallow them, they'll transport you across any body of water, through any barrier, or anything, as long as you say the name of the place you wish to return to."
"Okay," Ben said. "But you only have enough to get there- not enough to get back."
"Well," Dorian said. "I don't think there's much of a solution for that. When we get on the Isle, we have to find a way to escape without them, or we're screwed."
"Fine," Evie said. "But first off, none of us can travel dressed like this." She gestured to her dress, and the suits of the boys.
"She's right," Jay said. "We would look absolutely ridiculous on the Isle of the Lost like this."
"Ben, Dorian," Evie said. "Come with me. I'll get you some nice, villainous clothes. Carlos, Jay, go change. We'll all meet up at the beach in twenty."
Once everyone was in agreement of the plan, Dorian and Ben followed Evie to her dorm room- the one she shared with Mal.
Immediately, Evie began stripping. She changed extremely quickly, donning a blue leather dress and black and blue boots. She put on a black leather jacket.
"What's with all the leather?" Dorian asked.
"This is how you dress on the Isle. Now, come on, take your pick- wait, no. I will pick for you."
She rummaged around in her closet, handing them each an outfit. "This is old stuff that Carlos and Jay had. I made it for them and they refused to wear the stuff. So, I repurposed it- it's yours now. Hurry and get dressed."
Dorian and Ben both changed into their clothes, examining their outfits in mild shock. Ben wore black jeans with rips on the knees, black shoes, and a leather blue and black shirt. Over it, he wore a black, sleeveless leather jacket.
Dorian on the other hand, wore black leather pants, a red shirt with a hood, and a red and black checkered belt. He wore black boots and had a wallet chain- with no wallet.
"I look ridiculous," Dorian said.
"You look absolutely evil. Now c'mon! We have to move!" She ran out of the room, followed by Ben. Dorian took one last look at his reflection, before pulling on the hood, and following after them.
The beach was not terrible for Dorian. The rain had since lightened considerably, and everyone gathered around him, waiting for a pearl. He pulled off his necklace, handing each person a single pearl, saving one for himself.
"Alright," he said. "Swallow it, and immediately say the Isle of the Lost. Keep in physical contact so we all arrive immediately together. On three."
"One."
"Two."
"Three."
They swallowed the pearls.